7 Card Stud Strategy

7 Card Stud has long been a favourite among poker players. Good play involves a few techniques that rewards the players who do them well. The 3 techniques are observation, understanding player tendencies, and memorization. Every online poker room offers 7 card stud at most limits. Follow these suggested strategy tips, and you make become a profitable 7 card stud player in no time.

Starting Hands

The biggest cause of players losing at 7 card stud is playing way too many hands. This is a result of not setting minimum starting requirements and playing pretty much every hand they are dealt. The main reason this happens is that in 7 card stud, players are required to put an ante in every hand to be dealt cards. We suggest the following starting hands:

3 of a kind
A pair of 10’s or better
3 cards to a flush
3 cards to an outside straight

Occasionally you may want to play lesser / tier 2 hands, these include gut shot straights (7-8-10), 2 card high flushes, or smaller pairs. When playing these hands be ready to fold if you don’t better your hand on 4th street. We suggest mixing up playing these types of hands on a 60%-40% basis, playing the hands 60% of the time.

Observation

This element requires concentration, you have to try and remember all the cards are your opponents are dealt. This is important in figuring out whether you should stay in a hand. Perhaps 2 other players are dealt the very cards you need to improve your hand, or their shown cards are actually better than what your best hand is. The point is to keep track of the cards and base your decision on the information provided.

Player Tendencies

The players at your table often provide the information you need to become a winning player. Over the course of the poker game pay attention to the starting hands your opponents play. Takes notes classifying those who play solid and those who play loose, then use this information in deciding whether to bet raise or call the hands you play.

Memorizing

Having a good memory in 7 card stud has its advantages. Understanding your odds of catching your hand is good to know from the top of your head, you should memorize the odds or have a chart ready for you to reference. The other reason is just knowing what card have been dealt to players that were in hand and folded. Some players think they can catch cards by remaining in a hands, not remembering that the card was folded by another player.

Summary

The seasoned poker player finds that 7 card stud online poker rooms are filled with fish and make money implementing the very strategies mentioned above. The component the differs online form offline poker is patience. The reality is less than 20% of the online poker players have the patience to consistently make money. Use the strategies mentioned above, have patience with your starting hands, and you’ll be on your way to becoming a successful online 7 card stud poker player.